Review: Arena

Arena by Holly Jennings
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I was given a copy to review free by NetGalley


Given a chance to read this book I thought it would be interesting as it sounded, I was a bit hyped up for it as well, since it dealt with gamers and it being 'big' in the world. I wasn't happy with it, as it turns the world of gaming into what we see about rock stars being involved in drugs, sex, and fame.

The main character is Kali apart of a team where she's got a friend with benefits who OD's in her bed. The team and Kali have a hard time struggling through it and adjusting to their new team member. Kali takes an interest in him and realizes she's as badly addicted to everything as everyone else and with the new guy's help and Taoist bible as Kali calls it is able to break free from her addictions. The focus is more on the addictions and Kali's life verses what the game is about as it doesn't seem all that interesting.

The flow of it seems fine, but it feels like it was lacking something. Things were predictable within the writing and as it was more focus on the life outside the gaming world of the player, rather than the game it feels a bit misleading. It's a decent read but it was hard to stay connected and finish the book.

View all my reviews

Review: Mr. Thorne & the Witch

Mr. Thorne & the Witch by Diana Green
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

First off I love the way Diana Green writes. It's full of energy and the characters seem real, like you could actually see some things happening. It's wonderful to see a writer who can bring so many characters to life that you love or hate. The flow of the book is good it doesn't feel out of place

Malcom is a sweet heart of a man, he has a heart of gold, he also is a strong individual. Which mixes well with Karene's personality. Karene is a kind, but she's also suspicious of people, and has a good judge of character. She knows Malcom is a kind person and wants to repay his kindness in some way. So when Malcom hires Karene to make fireworks she agrees. You can tell the two have feelings for each other even if it's just slowly happening. Karene has some things which she doesn't want to tell Malcom in order to keep him safe since she's running from a feud, can use magic and gets into a bit of trouble as well. She makes do with what she can and together they both work on overcoming everything.

For me personally it was hard to get through some of the book. I like fantasy but it felt a little too much romance for my taste. But, in that I think the book is great over all, everything flows together and with miss Green's description you can definitely see how things come together and imagine it in your head. It is a good book, with enough to keep an audience captive till the end.

View all my reviews